


Pumpkin spice and everything nice

by DreamsAreMyWords



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: 13daysofclexa, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Autumn, Banter, Clexa, Day 13: Pumpkins, F/F, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff, Halloween, Humor, One Shot, Pumpkin patch au, Pumpkins, clextober18, fall - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-01 18:58:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16289987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamsAreMyWords/pseuds/DreamsAreMyWords
Summary: Lexa falls for a pretty blonde who owns a pumpkin patch, and keeps coming back every day to buy more pumpkins than she could ever possibly need as an excuse to work up the courage to ask her out.For Clextober Day 13: Pumpkins





	Pumpkin spice and everything nice

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Halloween, kru! I'm posting this a day early since I have a busy day tomorrow and I don't want to risk not having the time to get it posted. I do have a moodboard to go with it that I have queued on tumblr for tomorrow. Let me know what you think and I hope you enjoy! :D

 

 

Griffin’s Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze is packed, and that alone would be enough for Lexa to dislike it. She’s barely stepped foot out of her car, Aden bobbing along beside her, when her headache forms. It’s cold outside and the air is filled with the sounds of enthusiastic chatter, laughter, and adrenalized screams. There are children and families everywhere, picking through through the vegetables, standing in line for hot apple cider, standing in a longer line awaiting a tractor ride through the corn maze, taking photos in the life-size cardboard cutout of three farmers. Lexa sighs.

“Okay, let’s be quick about this please,” she begs Aden as he bounces excitedly toward the gate.

“Don’t be such a stick in the mud, Lex,” he tells her with all the carefree anticipation of a nine year old about to pick out the perfect pumpkin to carve a batman signal on. “Mom said you have to get two pumpkins, by the way. Just in case I mess up on the first one.”

“Sure she did,” grouses Lexa, but she trails along behind him as they enter the huge patch littered with countless pumpkins. Lexa’s taken one step inside when she looks up and sees her.

Her being the most gorgeous woman she’s ever laid eyes on, wearing a pair of overalls with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders and a red beanie tucked down over blonde hair that shines gold in the morning sunlight. Even from this distance, Lexa can see the blue of her eyes, the pink of her lips, the absolutely breathtaking smile she has as she speaks to a family, hitching up the large pumpkin she’s showing to them. Wow, Lexa thinks. She tells herself the pumpkin is impressive but she’s more concerned with the blonde attached to it.

So concerned, in fact, that she doesn’t watch where she’s going and her boot-clad foot gets caught in whatever leafy vines she’s walking over, and she hits the dust. Oh, God. She face-plants it and she can hear someone shout out so it must have looked bad enough to draw attention and Lexa wishes she could melt right through the ground. When a raspy voice asks her if she’s okay and soft hands on her shoulders urge her up and she knows, she just knows it’s the beautiful blonde over to check on her, Lexa wishes she never set foot in this pumpkin patch period.

“I’m fine,” she interjects over the sound of the blonde ordering someone that works here to bring her a cup of cider. She staggers up to her feet with the help of the girl grabbing her hand, and when she looks up to meet shocking blue eyes, Lexa once again wishes she could have head-butted a pumpkin and knocked herself out because she’s never, ever going to get over this mortifying moment for the rest of her life.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” says the girl, and to her credit she isn’t laughing at all, just peering at Lexa in concern. Aden, on the other hand, is sporting a shit-eating grin from where he hovers somewhere at elbow-level below them.

“Not the first time you fell for a girl, Lex,” he says, and she wants to swat at him but he’s already darted a few feet away out of distance, grin growing.

The blonde glances at him curiously, muted amusement in her eyes before she looks back at Lexa. “Girls, huh?”

“My brother,” Lexa manages to say with an attempt to roll her eyes that comes out as more of a weird twitch. Jesus, she wishes a kid would throw a pumpkin at her head and end her of this misery. The blonde stares at her expectantly and Lexa realizes what she’s waiting for. “Aden. That’s his name.”

The blonde tilts her head, lips quirking as though it’s getting harder for her not to smile but she’s trying not to for Lexa’s sake. The thought has Lexa blushing even harder than she already is because not only is this woman gorgeous, she’s also clearly kind, and Lexa’s even weaker for that. “Nice to meet you, Aden,” says Clarke, turning to smile at the boy who grins back. “And you. Lex?” she turns back to Lexa with a brow raised and Lexa, who is very insistent on no one but her brother calling her by that, just swallows thickly and nods.

“It’s Lexa, technically. Lexa Woods.”

“Lexa,” says the woman as though she’s tasting it; Lexa fights to control her breathing. “That’s a pretty name. I’m Clarke Griffin.” The woman looks between Aden and Lexa with a smile. When the man who’d been running the apple cider stand comes over with a cup; she thanks him and hands it to Lexa, who takes it automatically. “I own this pumpkin patch. Can I help you guys with anything? Did you want some apple cider too, Aden?”

He shakes his head, sandy hair flopping over his forehead. “Nope,” he says, popping the word out; he catches Lexa’s stern eye and quickly adds, “Thanks though. We just came to get a pumpkin!”

“Well you’re in the best place,” says Clarke with a smile, glancing at Lexa once more before turning and gesturing for the two of them to follow her. “Are you sure you’re okay?” she adds to Lexa, “That looked like a nasty fall.”

“I’m fine,” says Lexa truthfully. Nothing is bruised except for her pride.

“Okay. Follow me, then.”

Clarke chats to them as she leads them across the field, telling them how she came to own this place and discussing her favorite elements of Halloween with Aden. There are perfectly good pumpkins all around them but she weaves her way through them like they’re inconsequential and Aden and Lexa follow, Lexa still trying to calm her pounding heart with frequent sips of the cider; it’s delicious. Poor consolation for the fact that she just humiliated herself in front of the most beautiful woman she’s ever seen and the owner of this establishment, but what’s new.

“So, mini pumpkins are a dollar fifty, three for the larger ones, and same goes for the gourds. Pie pumpkins are two dollars each, white and specialty pumpkins are fifty five cents. Corn stalks are five a bundle and I’m also selling my hay bales for six a pop. Jack-o-lanterns typically start out at five dollars but if they’re on the small side I might sell it to you a little cheaper. And this here is the best place to find one,” she says, stopping just before a patch of huge pumpkins.

Lexa nods; she’d barely been listening, too distracted by the sway of Clarke’s hips as they followed her. As such, she only realizes Clarke has fallen silent when she stops walking and turns; Lexa snaps her gaze up to bright blue eyes that twinkle as though Clarke knows exactly what’s running through her mind. Lexa swallows hard and averts her gaze, grasping onto Aden like the distraction and excuse he is.

“Did you get all that?” she asks seriously.

“Yep!” he chirps before bounding forward, focus already zeroed in on the biggest pumpkin there. Lexa deflates and, with little choice left, looks back at Clarke, who watches her with those pink lips curled up at one side.

“Thank you,” says Lexa a bit stiffly, fighting not to squirm where she stands. “This is, er. Very important to him.”

Clarke nods as though Lexa didn’t just make picking out a pumpkin to carve sound like the most important moment of Aden’s young life thus far. Truthfully, it could be. The kid is very intent on winning the neighborhood pumpkin carving contest.

Lexa scratches the back of her neck and makes to follow Aden, embarrassed, but Clarke’s next words stop her.

“What about you?”

Lexa turns back to look at her, confused. “What do you mean?”

Clarke’s smirk tips into a grin. “Is this a very important moment for you, too?”

“I, uh. I mean. I’ve bought pumpkins before.”

“Never from here, though.” Clarke says, arranging her face in a serious expression that has Lexa taken aback.

“Uh, no, never from here. We usually just go to Walmart but Aden wanted a proper experience this time. I promised him last year we would go. I even took off work for it.”

“He’s cute,” says Clarke, smiling slightly as she shifts her gaze onto him, watching the way he critically inspects each pumpkin, before slanting her eyes back onto Lexa. “I guess it runs in the family.”

Lexa chokes on her next sip of cider. Her stomach squirms when Clarke pats her on the back.

“Sorry, how is the cider? Monty makes it a little strong sometimes. Any good?”

“It’s great,” manages Lexa, taking another sip to quell her coughing.

She stiffens again when Clarke reaches out, catches Lexa’s eye and gestures at the cup. “Do you mind?”

“Oh, um, no. Go ahead.”

She watches as Clarke takes the cup from her hand and wraps her lips around a section of the styrofoam, tipping it back to take a drink before handing it back. Lexa’s throat has a lump in it at this point but she ignores it and tries not to think about the fact that her lips will be touching where Clarke’s did. She doesn’t fail to notice that Clarke is standing rather close to her, and she smells delicious— like pumpkin spice. She wonders if it’s natural from working here or if Clarke uses perfume to add to the pumpkin patch effect. Either way it has her head swimming.

“Oh, I have to go,” says Clarke, realizing she has a queue forming for families ready to pay for their vegetables and leave. She shoots Lexa a warm smile as she backs away. “Come see me when you’re ready, Lex.”

Fuck.

Lexa watches her walk away until Aden unceremoniously shoves at her shoulder and causes her to slop apple cider over the rim of her cup, wetting her hand. She frowns at him, switching the cup to her other hand so she can lick the droplets off her thumb and doesn’t notice Clarke watching her do it. “Really? You’re so clumsy.”

“You’re one to talk,” he taunts, grinning at her. “I can’t wait to tell Anya you fell because you were staring at Clarke.”

Of course he has to bring the oldest sister into it. “Anya won’t care, considering she doesn’t know who Clarke is,” says Lexa with a roll of her eyes.

“Yeah she does! She’s the pumpkin patch girl. She was in the paper for winning the pumpkin prize. That’s why I wanted to come here! She has the best pumpkins.”

Lexa looks at Clarke out of the corners of her eye, noting the taut stretch of the overalls over her chest, and immediately averts her gaze. Fuck’s sake. She can’t help but to silently agree with her brother.

“Anyways, I picked out what I want.” He looks very proud about that fact and Lexa looks over his head behind him, easily spotting the largest pumpkin in the patch.

“Let me guess.”

And that’s what leads to them standing in line waiting to check out, Lexa profusely sweating even in this chilly October air and close to swearing loudly under the weight of a pumpkin half her size. Okay, not literally, but still, it’s way too damn big, and Aden’s smug grin is way too big— as is Clarke’s when it’s finally their turn.

“Hang on, do you want me to help you walk this to your car before you pay? Looks heavy.” She laughs when Lexa shoots her a look, and damn if the sound of it doesn’t ring like bells in Lexa’s heart. Oh, geez. She’s way too weak for girls.

Clarke helps her carry it to the back of her car and pile it in, along with the extra two mini pumpkins Aden carried.

“So, I hear you were in the paper,” says Lexa without thinking as they walk back to the table.

Clarke smiles. “I was indeed.”

“That’s impressive. Congratulations.”

Clarke chuckles as she takes the eleven dollars Lexa owes her. “I don’t know about that. They put someone in the paper for taking a picture of their toast the other day. I guess it looked like Jesus or something,” she adds when Lexa gives her a questioning look, waving her hand dismissively.

“Hm. Well, the fact that you won grand prize is a pretty big deal.” Lexa may have already googled the article.

Clarke’s grin grows. “You read it, huh?”

Now that she’s not off balance from falling and making a total fool out of herself, Lexa’s feeling a bit better. She even returns Clarke’s grin, taking satisfaction in the way Clarke blinks a few times in response. “I might have. Like I said, it’s pretty impressive.”

“What exactly did you find most impressive?” asks Clarke.

It has Lexa’s throat going dry again. This time she pauses, deliberately flicking her gaze down the length of Clarke’s body, then slowly up again. When she meets Clarke’s eyes, she’s pleased to see the pretty pink flush coating her cheeks. “I wouldn’t even know where to begin.”

“Anywhere you want,” suggests Clarke, and the words and the way she says them and that look in her eyes has a tug stirring low in Lexa’s belly, but before she can say anything else, they’re interrupted.

“Lexa, come on,” shouts Aden from the car. “Flirt later! I gotta carve these pumpkins!”

Clarke laughs when Lexa slaps a hand over her face and groans.

“Um, okay, I’ll see you around,” says Lexa, shaking her head as she steps back. If she’d dropped her hand, she might have seen the flash of disappointment flickering across Clarke’s face as she practically fled to her car.

“I hope so!” calls Clarke, and Lexa’s flustered enough she can barely shoot her a wave over her shoulder before climbing into her car.

“You are such a butt,” she hisses at her brother as she turns the key.

Aden just grins at her. “I might need another pumpkin so maybe you’ll see her again.”

She glances at the rearview mirror as she backs out, spots Clarke still standing at the table watching them for a second before she turns her attention to new customers, and can’t help but hope another pumpkin will be needed.

 

\\\

 

As it turns out, another pumpkin is needed. And another. And another.

She ends up going to the pumpkin patch the next three days in a row. Every time she walks through that gate (careful to avoid the pumpkin vines she tripped over the last time), she spots Clarke and eagerly returns her wave before chastising herself for being so obvious. Clarke doesn’t seem to mind, though. Lexa picks around the pumpkins for a while, being rather useless about it. On the second day, Aden comes with her, but teases her so relentlessly that on the third day she tells him she’s going on her own. He teases her about that too, along with Anya and their parents, but at least Lexa can leave them to it. Today’s her third day in a row here and she’s already spent nearly thirty dollars on pumpkins for Aden and other vegetables for her mother. If she’s lucky, maybe she’ll manage to ask Clarke out before she completely drains her bank account.

Three days stretches into four, then five. Clarke’s not really teasing Lexa about her brother’s inability to carve a pumpkin anymore. Instead she teases her about a lot of other things, and Lexa teases her right back, and they spend hours together at the pumpkin patch engaging in endless banter and suggestive flirting that somehow never manages to culminate in Lexa growing the courage to ask her for a coffee or even ask for her phone number. The fact that Clarke hasn’t asked either worries her slightly; what if this is one sided?

It’s a stretch, even she can admit that. Lexa might be a useless lesbian, but she’s not a total idiot. Clarke seems just as pleased to see her when she walks in through the gate, and she definitely ignores her customers in favor of chatting with Lexa sometimes. She clearly knows Lexa hasn’t needed to buy a pumpkin every day, and she definitely knows Aden already finished his pumpkin a couple days ago, considering she showed her a picture of the glowing batman signal carved expertly into it (she and Anya may have helped that time).

Today is the sixth day in a row she’s showed up here, and her last chance to ask Clarke out considering it’s the night before Halloween and as such Clarke is closing up the pumpkin patch for the year after tonight’s annual party. It’ll involve a scary tractor ride through the maze, bobbing for apples, and various games for the kids where they can win candy.

Lexa’s spent so much time here by now that some of the workers recognize her and greet her with a wave. She’s a bit nervous today— not just because of what she plans to ask Clarke, but because this time she’s toting Aden and Anya with her. Aden’s bad enough with embarrassing her, but Anya takes downright enjoyment in it. She’s already smirking when Clarke sees them from all the way across the patch and waves. Lexa waves back, already blushing. Clarke’s looking particularly cute today, in a sweater and leggings instead of the usual overalls, her hair in loose, messy curls.

“Swallowed your tongue, sis?” asks Anya smugly.

“Shut up,” groans Lexa, anxiously dragging a hand through her hair.

Anya looks at her curiously. “You’re really worked up about this one, aren’t you?”

“She’s in love with her,” says Aden matter-of-factly. Lexa blanches, head shooting up to ensure Clarke is still far, far away. Thankfully she is.

“I am not,” says Lexa quickly, ignoring how the words taste bitter and untrue on her tongue. “I’ve only known her for a week. But she’s...pretty amazing.” Lexa watches her now, her smile, the way she throws back her head and laughs as the child she’s helping pick a pumpkin brandishes a strange twisty gourd like it's a sword. “She’s so funny, and smart, and she can eat her own weight in roasted brown sugar pumpkin seeds. And—”

Anya smirks. “The fact that she’s hot helps too, I’m sure.”

“She is,” agrees Lexa. “It’s also the least interesting thing about her.”

“All right, that’s enough disgusting fluff for now, right Aden?” announces Anya dryly, turning to the boy.

He nods stoically, losing it and cracking a smile when Lexa shoots him a withering stare. “We’re gonna go bob for apples. Have fun with your girlfriend, Lex!”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Lexa mutters after him, turning to look across the patch at Clarke again, who catches her eye and gives her a smile that has Lexa’s heart skipping a beat. “Yet,” she says under her breath. “Hopefully…”

“Lex!” greets Clarke warmly, bouncing up to her a few minutes later when Lexa’s too nervous to interrupt her with the families she’s been helping. “Don’t tell me you need another pumpkin,” she says teasingly, “Or did you come for the celebration today?”

Lexa opens her mouth to tell Clarke actually she came for neither, she came for her, but then realizes Clarke is holding two steaming styrofoam cups and extending one for Lexa. To Lexa’s surprise, it isn’t the usual cider.

“Hot chocolate?” she queries. Yesterday she’d admitted to Clarke that the hot apple cider she’d been drinking, while delicious, wasn’t her favorite, and now...

“Monty happened to bring a pot with him today,” says Clarke with a shrug, bringing her cup to her lips and examining Lexa over the rim.

Lexa narrows her eyes. “Right after I told you it’s arguably the best fall and winter drink?”

“Hmm, what a coincidence,” hums Clarke into her cup, eyes twinkling.

Lexa smiles incredulously at her, pleased and touched.

The rest of the late afternoon passes in the blink of an eye. Aden fills his pockets to the brim with candy and Anya ends up winning the apple bobbing contest to everyone except Lexa and Aden's surprise (they often say if Anya were an animal she'd be a shark). Clarke spends most of her time with them between helping customers, and Lexa’s heart picks up every moment Clarke finds an excuse to casually touch her— an absent touch to her arm while they talk, grabbing her hand when she leads her somewhere, sometimes putting her hands on her hips to slip around her when she has to walk somewhere else to help someone.

Later on Monty and Harper cover Clarke so she and Lexa can go on a tractor ride into the corn maze. Despite the fact that they’re practically cuddling in the back of the wagon, it’s not quite as romantic as Lexa hoped, what with being stuffed into the wagon with a dozen kids that screamed every time something jumped out at them— and she’d hoped, because maybe if the two of them were finally alone, she could grow some ovaries and ask her out. But that was quickly proven not true at the end of the afternoon when the two of them neglected Clarke’s cleanup duties to sit on the hay bales discussing life instead.

“So yeah, my dad loved Halloween. It was always our favorite holiday. I wish he could see the patch now,” says Clarke wistfully, looking out over the fields.

“He’d be proud of you,” says Lexa. Clarke shoots her a grateful smile. “This place is fantastic, Clarke.”

“It must be, the amount of times you’ve come back,” says Clarke playfully, but she looks at Lexa curiously, a question in her eyes.

Lexa opens her mouth but she can’t bring herself to say it. She looks down and carefully inspects the nearly empty cup in her hands like it’s the most fascinating thing in the world. “Well, you know. I needed pumpkins, you supplied them,” she says feebly.

“Right,” says Clarke, voice much more subdued now. She still studies Lexa closely for a second before looking down at her own cup, a slight crease between her brows like she’s confused and maybe even hurt. Lexa’s stomach lurches unpleasantly.

This is it, she realizes. This is her chance. Last chance, because Clarke would be closing up tomorrow and Lexa had absolutely no excuse to buy a pumpkin after Halloween so yeah, this is it. This is _it,_ come on Lexa.

“Clarke.”

Clarke look up at her, blinks, and then waits. Lexa takes a deep breath, opens her mouth, and—

“Hey, Lex, you ready?”

Fuck.

Anya and Aden approach them, both happily munching on some candy. They pause, gaze darting between them.

“Did we interrupt something?” asks Anya.

Lexa opens her mouth to say _yes,_ they did, and please _go away,_ but Clarke leaps to her feet before she can.

“Not at all,” she says with a smile, reaching out to ruffle Aden’s hair. “Congrats on winning the carving contest, buddy.”

“Thanks,” he beams, thin chest puffing out in pride.

“And it was nice to meet you, Anya,” adds Clarke; Anya nods in response but doesn’t say anything. Typical.

Those blue eyes shift onto Lexa’s now and has her losing her breath. She wets her lips and opens her mouth yet again, but no sound comes out.

“And you, Lexa.” Clarke’s smile doesn’t quite meet her eyes, but it’s still impossibly kind as she takes a step back, smiling sadly like she’s giving Lexa an out. “I hope we’ll see each other around.”

“I— “

“Clarke!”

They’re interrupted again, this time by Monty, who’s closing up near the gourds. Clarke calls that she’ll be right there and turns to say goodbye to them all again, hesitating before pulling Lexa into a hug that renders her speechless once more.

Lexa can do nothing more than watch Clarke hurry off to Monty, frozen in place until Anya claps a hand on her shoulder.

“Well, that was a total failure. It actually hurt to watch.”

Aden just shakes his head.

Lexa follows them to the car, dejected and let down. As they drive home, however, she thinks about Clarke— and realizes she can’t wait, she has to do something. She sits up straighter in her seat. “Hey, we still have some extra pumpkins, right?”

Anya snorts. “Lexa, I think you bought enough pumpkins to supply an entire village. Why?”

Lexa takes a breath, thinking fast. “I have an idea.”

 

\\\

 

The pumpkin patch is almost empty when Lexa returns, only a few stragglers still lingering. She hastens out of her car carrying one of Aden’s smaller pumpkins in her arms. She rushes through the gates and makes a beeline for Clarke, who’s standing in the same patch of large pumpkins she’d led them to when they first met. She'd changed back into her overalls but her golden hair is still loose and wavy.

Clarke straightens up and plants a hand on her hip, using the back of the other to wipe at the dirt on her forehead; it does nothing but smear it down the side of her face in a long streak. She’s oblivious as she spots Lexa and immediately brightens. “Back already, Lex? Is there a problem with the half a dozen pumpkins you’ve already bought from me? I gave you my best ones, you know. Prime jack-o'-lantern material.”

Lexa stops right before her, less than a foot between them, and takes a deep breath, twisting her hands together. “Yes. I mean, no. I mean. Here.” She holds out the pumpkin and Clarke arches a brow in response. “This is for you.”

Laughter bubbles out of Clarke’s lips but she still takes the pumpkin, looking a mixture of bewildered and delighted. “You’re giving _me_ a pumpkin?”

“It’s a special one,” breathes Lexa, butterflies going wild in her stomach. “Look at the carving,” she suggests.

“It’s a bunch of numbers,” says Clarke in surprise, tilting her head and the pumpkin to look at it. “It’s…” She blinks, smile growing in disbelief. “It’s your phone number.”

Lexa nods. “It’s my phone number,” she confirms, and she’s glad she at least sounds more confident than she is. “Feel free to call it sometime. Or text it. You know, call me, beep me.” She clears her throat. “If you wanna reach me.”

Clarke looks up at Lexa, mouth agape, and then bursts into a smile. “Definitely.” She tilts her head then, and shifts the pumpkin from one hand to another, scrutinizing Lexa with slightly narrowed eyes. “Is that the only reason you came, then? For the pumpkins?”

Lexa swallows. “I was never really here for the pumpkins. I’m here for you. That’s- that’s actually the real reason I keep showing up.”

A corner of Clarke’s lips quirk up in a crooked grin. “Oh, so you’re telling me the reason you kept coming back to my pumpkin patch multiple times a day for the past week _wasn’t_ because I was featured on the front page of the Arkadia newspaper for winning grand prize at the Polis Pumpkin Festival of 2018?”

“I mean. You do have some great pumpkins. But no, that’s not why I kept coming back.”

“I know.”

“I came back because of you.” Lexa’s hands shake, but she tucks them into her sleeve and sucks another shaky breath in. “Because you’re- because you’re you. And I really, really like you.”

Clarke’s smile only grows. “I know. Are you done talking now?”

“I think so.” She tilts her head, eying Clarke— the way she stands so sure with her hip cocked out, the grin that’s almost cocky, the bright blue of her eyes. “Kinda hoping you have something to say too?”

Clarke shakes her head as she carefully sets the pumpkin down on the ground. Then she reaches out, curls a hand into Lexa’s loose sweater and _tugs_. “I’m kinda thinking we don’t have to talk at all right now.”

Lexa’s heart is in her throat, pounding away as Clarke brings her stumbling forward so their bodies are flush together. “Oh.”

Light dances in Clarke’s eyes as Lexa’s face grows nearer until suddenly she’s close enough she could count each individual eyelash that flutters over Clarke’s shutting eyes. Clarke tips her chin up and Lexa’s eyes nearly roll back into her head before closing at the slow drag of the tips of their noses together, and then soft lips are pressing into hers and _oh_ , it feels like the first time she met Clarke, falling head over heels into something she never quite expected.

Clarke’s hands fist her sweater and Lexa cups her face and they kiss slowly, softly, without a care in the world, the scent of pumpkin spice lingering in the air and distant laughter still sounding from beyond the gates. There’s nowhere else Lexa would rather be.

 

\\\

  
The sun inches below the horizon and colors the world orange when they finally pull back to catch their breath. Clarke smiles warmly at Lexa, eyes a darker blue than Lexa has ever seen them, and reaches up to tuck a curl of Lexa’s hair behind her ear. “I’m glad you’re a better kisser than you are a haggler. I think you alone made most of my profits, you know.”

“You technically gave me those last couple pumpkins for free.”

“I gave you the pretty girl discount.”

Lexa licks her lips, drops her hands to Clarke’s waist and pulls her so they’re even closer together. “In that case, how about you let me take you out for dinner tonight?”

“Smooth.” Clarke briefly closes her eyes to tip her forehead against Lexa’s and hums in appreciation. “You came to pick out a pumpkin and instead you picked up a girlfriend.”

Lexa’s eyes fly open, her mouth dropping. “You’re- I mean, you want?-”

“If you play your cards right.” Clarke opens her eyes and draws back too, lazy and languid. She smiles as she strokes a fingertip down the curve of Lexa’s cheek and traces the outline of her lips. “Considering the fact that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since the moment I first saw you tripping headfirst over my pumpkin vines, you’re doing pretty well so far.”

“It was technically your fault I tripped,” confesses Lexa. “I looked up and saw you and...”

It’s Clarke’s turn to exhale a long breath now, briefly biting her lip and eying Lexa’s again before her gaze flickers back to Lexa’s eyes. “Let me lock up and then I’m all yours, okay?”

The words have warmth flooding through Lexa’s body. She can’t help but grin through the soft kiss they share before Clarke pulls back to do her business, helping the last few customers pick out the perfect pumpkins and ringing them up before ushering them out of the gates. Lexa hops up onto the table and leans back against the fence as she waits, one long leg draped over the other, happy to sit here forever if it means watching Clarke as she totters around doing whatever needs to be done. She’s so beautiful and even now Lexa’s mouth tingles with the remnants of their kiss and she can’t believe the events of this week leading up to this. She doesn’t know what she did to deserve this, but God, she is grateful.

“Almost done,” says Clarke not long later, dumping an armful of leftover zucchini and squash into a wheelbarrow before coming over to where Lexa sits. Her eyes, still that particular dark shade of blue, linger at Lexa’s legs as she parts them and gestures for Clarke to come stand between them. She hooks her fingers around a strap of Clarke’s overalls and tugs her over for a warm kiss. “I missed you,” breathes Clarke; Lexa laughs under her breath.

“I’m right here.”

“Oh, I know.” Clarke pulls back just slightly to deliberately run her appreciative gaze down the length of Lexa’s body; Lexa shivers beneath it, especially when Clarke reaches up to play with a curl of her hair. “Trust me, I can’t forget. I nearly dropped all the gourds earlier because I couldn’t take my eyes off you.”

“How the turn tables,” murmurs Lexa, drifting her mouth over clarke’s as she says the words, and Clarke sighs as she looks heavenward.

“And she watches The Office,” she bites her lip and then bites Lexa’s as if for good measure. “You wanna just get married here in the pumpkin patch?”

“I forgot the ring at home,” jokes Lexa.

“I don’t need a ring, baby,” Clarke jokes back, and it might be teasing but the use of that pet name with that husky tone has Lexa shivering again. By Clarke’s smirk, she’s apparently more than aware of that. “Mmm. God, you’re pretty.”

A blush colors Lexa’s cheeks pink, but she’s too happy to care. She pulls Clarke into another kiss and this time it’s longer, warm lips moving together, the hot slick of Clarke’s tongue sweeping across Lexa’s lower lip seeking entrance she eagerly grants. Clarke’s hands slip under her sweater, drift across her bare skin, and it takes everything not to spread her legs farther and press herself against her. She’s not able to resist slipping her hands down and into the pockets to cup Clarke’s ass and squeeze, swallowing Clarke’s gasp and meeting the rhythm of the kiss when Clarke deepens it before she finally has to break it and pull back, breathless and aching.

“Are you ready to go?” she asks airily, shaking her head slightly to clear it. Clarke’s hands are still under her sweater.

Clarke licks her lips, eyes still on Lexa’s lips. “How about we skip dinner and head back to your place?”

“Oh.” Lexa blinks. “Okay, that’s fine.” She smiles, shrugging as Clarke slides her hands down her arms to intertwine their fingers. “You could help me carve the pumpkins.”

Clarke rolls her eyes and laughs lightly as she tugs Lexa forward; she slides off the table and follows Clarke toward the gate. “Lex, trust me, I’ve had more than enough of pumpkins.” Lexa barely has the time to frown in puzzlement before Clarke’s next words have her stumbling. “I have a much better idea...”

And this time she knows exactly what Clarke is referring to, but she feigns dumb anyway even as she gives Clarke a knowing grin. “Oh, the infamous Clarke Griffin, purveyor of Arkadia’s finest pumpkins— “

“And Polis,” Clarke chimes in smugly.

“And Polis,” Lexa agrees, “is turning up the opportunity to carve them? Is giving up the opportunity to have roasted pumpkins seeds? I’m personally shocked.”

“I mean, the activity I have in mind isn’t that different,” says Clarke lightly, voice all too innocent and casual. “We’d still get sticky hands...and there’s something else I have in mind we could eat…”

Lexa’s squeak is lost in the sound of her loudly tripping over her mortal enemy by this point— more pumpkin vines— and falling, yet again, face first into the earth, except this time Clarke is still holding onto her hand and manages to at least stop her from face planting the dirt. Lexa falls hard, but it’s on her back this time. It still manages to take the breath out of her lungs and she just lays there for a moment, blinking up at the darkening orange sky above them, surprised.

Clarke’s laughter is loud and can be heard in each frantic beat of Lexa’s heart. “Oh, Lexa. Oh my God. Are you okay?”

“I’m okay,” confirms Lexa meekly. She looks over at Clarke who is doubled over above her, still holding Lexa’s stretched out hand.

“I don’t believe you. You are the clumsiest person I’ve ever met.”

“It’s your fault,” insists Lexa over Clarke’s infectious laughter. “Really. I could sue you for this, you know.”

It makes Clarke laugh even harder. “This is your master plan, isn’t it? Fake a liability, sue me, somehow eventually take control of my pumpkin patch.”

“Maybe, maybe not,” says Lexa evasively. “I might have other plans for us.”

Clarke’s laughter starts to taper off as she comes to loom over Lexa, peering down at her. Her laughter quiets but her smile grows. “Fuck, you’re pretty. You’re so pretty I don’t even know what to do with you.”

“I have a few ideas,” pipes up Lexa, and then Clarke is laughing again, until Lexa takes advantage of their joined hands and yanks her hard enough Clarke stumbles and falls right onto Lexa.

“See, look, a second person to fall in your pumpkin patch. It just serves to strengthen my cause. I’ll see you in court, Griffin.”

She’s not smiling quite as smugly when Clarke pushes herself up onto all fours and rearranges herself, legs bracketing Lexa’s hips to straddle her and hands flat on the earth on either side of Lexa’s head. She hovers over her, smirking slightly at how Lexa’s gone silent, and then her own smirk fades as she catches Lexa’s eye.

“I fell for you too, the second I saw you,” admits Clarke, quiet and calm as she watches Lexa’s reaction. “You just couldn’t see my fall.”

Lexa’s heart hammers in her chest but her hands barely shake as she lifts them up to run them over golden hair before gently cupping Clarke’s face like she's the most precious thing in the world— which she is.

“You’re beautiful, inside and out,” she tells her, smiling at the pink tinting Clarke’s cheeks. “I’m really happy my annoying brother needed a pumpkin.”

“Me too.”

She kisses her and decides stepping foot in this pumpkin patch is the best thing she's ever done.


End file.
